The salivary glands produce saliva, which keeps the mouth and other parts of the digestive system moist.
It also helps break down carbohydrates (with salivary amylase, formerly known as ptyalin) and lubricates the passage of food down from the oro-pharynx to the esophagus to the stomach.
There are three main pairs of salivary glands: the parotid, the submandibular and the sublingual glands.
For more information about the topic Salivary gland, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:
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Note: This page refers to an article that is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the article Salivary gland at Wikipedia.org. See the Wikipedia copyright page for more details. Editor's Note: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.
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